Ocular comorbidities and its relation to clinical and dermoscopic features in patients with alopecia areata: a case-control study

This case-control study examined ocular comorbidities in 65 patients with alopecia areata (AA) compared to 33 healthy controls, revealing that 90.8% of AA patients had ocular findings, significantly higher than the 60.6% in controls. Refractive errors, particularly myopia and hypermetropia, were prevalent in 89.2% of AA patients. Despite these findings, no significant differences were observed in intraocular pressure, fundus, anterior segment changes, or madarosis between patients and controls. The study concluded that routine ocular examinations might be necessary for AA patients due to the high prevalence of ocular findings, although age, sex, and disease duration did not significantly impact these comorbidities. Additionally, the study found no significant relationship between ocular alterations and dermoscopic findings, suggesting that dermoscopic features cannot predict ocular comorbidities. The study's main limitation was its small sample size, and it calls for larger studies with longer follow-up periods.